Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 122, No. 109 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
ITALY’S EX-PREMIER DIES AT 94 ROME (AP) — Giulio Andreotti personified the nation he helped shape, the good and the bad. One of Italy’s most important postwar figures, he helped draft the country’s constitution after World War II, served seven times ...
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
May 7, 2013
TUESDAY
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Woman set on fire dies, RPD conducts search JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Detectives from the Roswell Police Department are investigating a homicide after an incident that occurred around 6:45 p.m. Friday, when Lisa Smith, 44, burst from her residence at Mesa Verde Apartments, 502 S. Wyoming Ave., completely engulfed in flames. Two good Samaritans assisted in putting out the fire. Emergency Medical Services responded. They estimated that Smith had bur ns on more than 95
percent of her body. She was transported to a local hospital and then flown to Lubbock, Texas, for treatment. Evidence found at the scene suggests arson. The police believe the victim was deliberately set on fire. The family was notified, Monday, that the victim died, turning a potential arson investigation into a homicide. Charred areas on the outside of the building indicate the intensity of the blaze. A confidential source said that the woman was doused with some sort of accelerant and set on fire.
Another stated she was covered in kerosene. Police investigators are seeking the public’s assistance in locating Patrick Smith, 49, a person of interest. Smith is described as 5 feet 9 inches tall, weight 200 pounds, with brown eyes and a shaved head. Officials think Smith may also have bur ns on his body. Anyone with information on Smith’s whereabouts is urged to contact the Roswell Police Department (575-624-6770), or Crime Stoppers (1-888594-8477). j.palmer@rdrnews.com
Patrick Smith
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TOP 5 WEB
For The Past 24 Hours
• Police seeking info on Herrera • Roswell’s Most Wanted caught • More events at 2013 Party on the River • Old Timers kick off Party for 1st time • Six get bid to boys ...
INSIDE SPORTS
Whimsical UFO crash just north of Roswell Ilissa Gilmore Photo
ILISSA GILMORE RECORD STAFF WRITER
Drivers approaching the city’s northern limits on Hwy 285 will get a glimpse of a close encounter of the
BULLS STUN RUSTY HEAT 93-86 MIAMI (AP) — Nate Robinson was spitting blood in the first half, then delivered the deepest cuts of the night in the final moments. And the Chicago Bulls reminded the Miami Heat that no one in ...
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TODAY’S OBITUARIES
• T.E. Arrington • Don French • Emilia Martinez
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HIGH ...88˚ LOW ....55˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 ENTERTAINMENT.....A8 FINANCIAL .............B5 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........B6 LOTTERIES ............A2 NATION .................A6 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
Roswell kind. Unveiled Monday, a mural installation by Salinas, Calif.-based artist John Cer ney depicts a rural family welcoming a group of bewildered,
Garrey Carruthers named NMSU president
LAS CRUCES (AP) — Former Republican Gov. Garrey Carruthers was selected Monday as the new president of New Mexico State University. The NMSU Board of Regents voted 3-2 for Carruthers to lead the state’s second-largest four-year university. Carruthers has been dean of NMSU’s College of Business since 2003. He was governor from 1987 to 1990. Carruthers holds a doctorate degree in economics from Iowa State University. He received master’s and bachelor’s degrees from NMSU, and served as an assistant secretary in the U.S. Interior Department from 1981 to 1984. Two regents supported Daniel Howard, who left NMSU in 2008 to become dean of the college of liberal arts and sciences at the University of College at Denver. Howard was a biology professor at NMSU and joined the faculty in 1988. Other finalists were former Texas Tech University President Guy Bailey; former University of Nevada, Las Vegas, President David Ashley; and former Texas A&M University President Elsa Murano. Barbara Couture resigned as NMSU president last fall without explanation after fewer than three years in the job. Former University of Missouri system president Manuel Pacheco has been serving as interim president. NMSU’s main campus has an enrollment of more than 17,000 students and a yearly budget of more than $600 million. The university also has branch campuses in
stranded aliens to Earth. The mother offers a freshly baked pie to a confused, tall, green man as the other aliens look on with similarly alar med expressions.
The humans are a little more curious than concerned. The young daughter stares open-mouthed, as her father smiles and See ART, Page A3
Records: Politico involved in scandal
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — Records show that a political figure at the center of a Las Cruces judicial scandal was in regular contact with for mer New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson’s staff to of fer input on appointments to the bench in Dona Ana County. The Albuquerque Journal obtained the emails and a tape-recorded interview under the Inspection of Public Records Request. They suggest that, at the very least, real estate investor Edgar Lopez believed he was the man to see if someone wanted to garner a judicial appointment in Dona Ana County. Lopez emailed Richardson or his staff on at least a dozen occasions to provide local political background infor mation on nominees, according to the records. And over the years, Lopez, a Richardson
Steppin’ out to a Derby party
See SCANDAL, Page A3
Mark Wilson Photo
Aria Finch, right, and Miranda Howe show off their hat finery during the Kentucky Derby Party at the Roswell Museum and Art Center, Saturday.
Israeli airstrikes over Syrian targets loom over US diplomacy See CARRUTHERS, Page A3
WASHINGTON (AP) — Israel’s willingness to hit Syrian targets it sees as threats to its own existence has complicated the Obama administration’s internal debate over arming President Bashar Assad’s foes and may change the way U.S. approaches allies as it tries to boost the rebels, including with possible military aid. As Secretary of State John Kerry flew to Russia on Monday for talks with the Assad regime’s most powerful ally, the administration remained tight-lipped on both Israel’s weekend air strikes and their
implications for Washington decision-making. Israeli warplanes targeted caches of Iranian missiles that were bound for Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based terror group that has threatened Israel. The weapons would have allowed Hezbollah to strike Tel Aviv and as far as southern Israel from inside Lebanese territory. Still, Israel’s actions put Damascus and Moscow on notice that the U.S. and its allies may not wait for an international green light to become more actively engaged. The administration
said last week it was rethinking its opposition to arming the rebels or taking other aggressive steps to turn the tide of the two-year-old civil war toward the rebels.
At the same time, Israeli involvement in the war carries risks. Instead of prodding Russia into calling for Assad’s ouster, it could bring greater Arab sympathy for Assad and prompt deeper involvement from Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, actors committed See DIPLOMACY, Page A3
AP Photo
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, right, welcomes Secretary of State John Kerry, left, to his office at the Pentagon, Monday. Hagel invited Kerry to the Pentagon for a working lunch to discuss a range of national security issues.